What we learned when the Warriors’ offense falters in the decisive moment of defeat originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
There are no soft touches, no cupcakes, and no easy wins for the Warriors. That was made abundantly clear once again Monday night in Toronto.
The Warriors had a two-day break between games, held a practice Sunday and still couldn’t pull away from the reeling Toronto Raptors, who had lost 16 of their previous 17 games.
Golden State found themselves in another “decisive game,” and a 104-101 loss to this particular team provides a clear understanding that there are still many more difficult steps ahead if the Warriors want to. get out of mediocrity.
Stephen Curry scored 26 points to lead Golden State scorers. Andrew Wiggins finished with 20, Kyle Anderson had 13, Dennis Schröder had 12 and Kevon Looney came off the bench to score 10 points and nine rebounds.
Toronto reserve center forward Chris Boucher, a former Warrior, closed the game with 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting in the fourth quarter.
After losing two of the first three games of their four-game road trip, the Warriors need a win over the Timberwolves in Minnesota on Wednesday after a .500 trip.
Here are three observations from a game that is the latest in alarming losses:
The offensive is still in the fog
The Warriors shot 39.8 percent from the field and 40.1 percent in the paintingwhere all too often your offense goes to die.
On a larger scale, their quest for offense continues. The Warriors have had three outbursts in the last six weeks, but there hasn’t been any stretch of games in which they have stayed at or above the NBA average of about 112 points.
While they went 7-14 in their last 21 games, only one of the 11 starting lineups in that span reached 100 points in consecutive games.
Part of the low production is due to the Dennis Schröder’s tortuous acclimatizationwho hasn’t found the kind rhythm necessary to get the offense humming. And Buddy Hield’s three-point shot has been elusive since mid-November.
When a squad that has failed to reach 100 just seven times in the last two seasons already has 11 such games halfway through this season, the system is failing.
Much-needed solid play from Wiggins
After missing the first two games of the trip, Wiggins rejoined the team for Sunday’s practice, returned to the starting lineup and had a solid all-around performance.
Wow, it was necessary.
His 20 points came on 6-of-13 shooting from the field, including 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. He also grabbed three rebounds and provided commendable defense against dangerous Toronto forwards Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett.
After scoring just nine points in his last game, a 114-98 defeat Against the Miami Heat last Tuesday at the Chase Center, Wiggins needed to impose himself again on offense. With Jonathan Kuminga absent For at least another 10 games, someone will have to become the second capable scorer behind Curry.
Wiggins, in his hometown, filled that role.
Friend, friend, friend
Hield made his ninth start of the 2024-25 NBA season, putting him in excellent position to be Golden State’s second or third scorer behind Curry.
Hield played 33 minutes and finished with eight points, tying him with Lindy Waters III for Golden State’s sixth-leading scorer. He shot 3 of 13 from the field, including 2 of 10 from long range. His best work was recording four robberies.
Hield has made at least 50 percent of his shots only twice in the last 16 games. He has averaged 9.0 points during that span.
If Hield had been able to hit two more 3-pointers, the Warriors probably would have found a way to win and avoid the embarrassment of losing to a rebuilding team that was going nowhere.
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